TIL what an Ortholinear Keyboard is

Glove 80 keyboard:

There's also a wide world of alt letter layouts.

This is what I use every day

Prefer column staggered, but yes they really make you wonder how we got stuck with the dominant keyboard configurations. Typing with linear columns feels way more natural.

!ergomechkeyboards@lemmy.world

I have a split ortholinear keyboard that I made with parts from Keebio, I fucking love it. It has really reduced wrist strain for me.

It's the Levinson Rev. 3, which is relatively cheap (this is an expensive hobby just FYI) if you want to get into keyboards.

Edit: Levinson Rev. 3 was discontinued but the BFO-9000 is still a good option for a no-frills dip into things.

I'm of the firm opinion that the best keyboard layout and type is the one you feel most comfortable with.

But then I'm also of that opinion when it comes to things like desktop OSes, phone brands, etc.

It's not a popular opinion.

I just received my 4x12 keyboard 4 days ago! While there has been a steep learning curve and I took a huge hit on my typing speed, I really enjoy using it. I was a bit hesitant to spend much $$$ on something I wasn't sure about, so I decided that if I didn't like it that I could just use it as a macropad or use it in place of my dying Logitech G13 gaming pad. So far, I've been carrying it between work and home and using it for everything. If all goes well, this will be my main and only keyboard.

It's a CSTC40 that I bought from aliexpress. Unfortunately, it looks like they stopped selling it after I received mine (lucky me!). This unit seems to get shit on by mechanical keyboard enthusiasts, but I love it because it was cheap ($70CDN shipped) and didn't require soldering. I happened to have a set of keycaps that I've made work for this keyboard. I don't really look down when I'm typing, so I don't really care that some of the legends don't make sense.

Ergodox EZ has my whole hearted recommendation. Their keyboards are amazing and the only thing better for ergonomics would be a more custom curved piece.

They're a good company, I would recommend anyone checking them out.

It doesn't get better than this though https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/charachorder/the-master-forge-a-keyboard-built-for-you

Are there full-size ortho keyboards?

...hey, that's just like my library's old PET 2001, my first computer!..

Orthos are far superior to staggered keyboards. No finger is bigger than 1U and you don’t have to twist or move your hands.

Check out some of the keyboards posted here: !ergomechkeyboards@lemmy.world

The devil's creation.

I have a planck at work and a preonic at home. It takes some time to get used to but now that I have switched I will never go back. I might try something split like a corne next but I'm kind of waiting for something that matches my olkb boards a bit better. Ortholinear would be the new standard if I had my way. I'm also eyeing that MNT Reform pocket pretty hard for that awesome keyboard but I really want them to release a tactile switch option for it.

Tried a Typematrix. At the time, I was a roving freelancer who frequently worked with other people at their machines, so I decided that it was safer to stick with a conventional layout.

Having Enter on the thumb was interesting, but I never got used to it.

My fingers are crooked and better suited to a normal keyboard lol

They're dope. Everything being the same size (1u) is fun. I've only ever typed on one though. I have 4 custom keyboards and none of them are orthos.

I have an ortho I made, and I just couldn't get used to it. I've never had any keyboard-related RSI, and my "spider dance" typing is very much a hand-eye coordination task, so... ehhh. No neuroplasticity for it.

I love my ortholinear 40%. I don't think I can ever go back.

the one on the thumbnail looks like it contains at least 95% cocoa

Ortholinear is a great gateway into better keyboards and a better layout. I started with a planck and used it to learn colemak-dh. I have since moved to a more DIY split keyboard with a columnar layout which is ortholinear except the volume are staggered to fit the length of fingers better.

This journey has been a godsend in helping my RSI issues from my Dev job.

interesting, how is the typing speed on those compared to normal keyboards?